Monthly Archives: May 2013

Laura’s Coca-Cola Cake

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*****The Weitl clan is on vacation so this post was graciously written by the infamous Laura.  Special thanks to one of my BFFs for contributing!!******

I love Coca-Cola. I love chocolate. I love cake. What I didn’t realize until recently is that I could put all of those things together and come up with delicious yumminess.

I love the get togethers we have with the Weitls. I was supposed to bring a dessert for one of our family dinners and decided to make Chocolate Coca-Cola Cake. I had made it once before and shared a few pieces with Jamie and she really liked it so I decided to make it again. No one was disappointed.

Before this recipe, I had never made a cake from scratch. I didn’t see the point since opening a box was so easy. After this, though, a box cake just isn’t quite good enough. The ingredients are easy to find. In fact, I had all of them in my house when I decided to make it the first time except for one… buttermilk. That was easy to remedy though. Just put ½ Tbsp. of white vinegar into a ½  cup measuring cup and then fill the cup with milk. Let it stand for 5 minutes and you have buttermilk substitute. Clean up is easy as well. There aren’t a lot of dishes to deal with. The hardest part is waiting for the cake to cool a bit before pouring on the frosting.


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Coca-Cola Cake
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Serves: 12
 
Ingredients
  • Cake Ingredients:
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 cups sugar
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • 2 sticks softened butter
  • ¼ c. unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 c. Coca-Cola
  • ½ c. buttermilk
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla (I used Jamie’s Homemade Vanilla)
  • Frosting Ingredients:
  • ½ c. butter
  • ¼ c. unsweetened cocoa powder
  • ½ c. Coca-Cola
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
  1. Cake Directions: Preheat oven to 350degrees. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, and cinnamon. Set aside. Put butter, cocoa powder, Coca-Cola, and buttermilk in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir until it comes to a boil. Remove from heat and pour it into the flour mix. Stir until combined. Add 2 eggs and 1 tsp vanilla. Mix. Pour into greased 9x13. Bake for approximately 30 minutes. I like to take it out a little early so it is nice and moist.
  2. Frosting Directions: Combine butter, cocoa powder, and remaining Coca-Cola in a saucepan (I use the same one I used for the cake) over medium heat until it comes to a boil. Remove from heat. Slowly whisk in powered sugar until smooth. Pour frosting over warm cake.

 

 

This cake receives 10 Wooden Spoons — a very high honor!  5 from the Weitl clan and 5 from the Kilmartin clan.  We all loved it and devoured it — as you can tell from Cade’s chocolatey face above!

OREO Cake Creation

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On Friday evening, we had the Cetwinski’s over to enjoy our new deck.  We cooked burgers on the grill, allowed the kids to run crazy in the yard (and get covered in mosquito bites), and enjoyed my Oreo cake creation.

On Thursday afternoon, I was trying to think of something I could make that would utilize mostly ingredients I already had.  I ended up making this recipe up as I went and it actually turned out really good.  It’s basically a combo of dirt cake and eclair cake.  It tastes exactly like Oreos that have been dunked in milk.  If you’re an Oreo dunker, you’ll love this cake!

This cake would be perfect for a bbq, potluck, or other family gathering this summer.  Cool, creamy, and delicious!

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OREO Cake Creation
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Serves: 12
 
2 packages Oreo cookies 1 large box instant vanilla pudding 1½ cup milk 1 - 8 oz. cream cheese, softened 1 cup powdered sugar 2 Cool Whip
Ingredients
  • In a large bowl combine milk and instant pudding until well mixed. Fold in 1 container of Cool Whip. In another bowl, whip together the cream cheese and powdered sugar. Fold into the other mixture. In a 9x13 inch pan, cover the bottom with Oreos. Pour half of the pudding mixture over the top and place another layer of Oreos and then the rest of the pudding mixture. Top with the remaining container of Cool Whip. Chill for at least 12 hours before serving to achieved the "dunked" Oreo effect.

 

Mexican Lasagna

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I originally made this recipe about 4 years ago and Mike wasn’t a fan.  I made it again last week and he thought it was great.  Someone’s palate is expanding.  Thank the Lord!

This recipe is a great alternative to the traditional “taco night” – basically it’s a combo of enchiladas and tacos in lasagna form.  It tastes great and reheats very well for leftovers.  I ate it for breakfast the next morning.  I actually ate this four times — two dinners, once for lunch, and once for breakfast.  It’s delicious.  We served it with Mike’s infamous BLT guacamole.

Definitely a winner — and a recipe that I’ll be adding to our regular rotation.

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Mexican Lasagna
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Serves: 8
 
Ingredients
  • 1 lb hamburger
  • 10-15 corn tortillas
  • 1 large can enchilada sauce
  • 1 can fat free refried beans
  • ½ cup chopped onion
  • ½ cup chopped green pepper
  • 1 bag shredded Mexican blend cheese
  • diced tomatoes
  • lettuce shreds
  • sour cream
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350. In a skillet, brown hamburger, onion, and green pepper. Drain. Add enchilada sauce and refried beans and cook until bubbly. Spray a casserole dish with Pam and place tortillas in the bottom (I broke some of them in pieces to mostly cover the bottom. Pour ⅓ of the hamburger mixture over the top of the tortillas and then ⅓ of the bag of shredded cheese. Repeat layers 2 more times. Bake for 20-25 minutes until bubbly. Top with diced tomatoes, lettuce, and sour cream.

 

Jack Daniel’s Sauce

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When I was in high school and college, one of my favorite places to go out to eat was TGIFriday’s.  I loved the Jack Daniel’s sauce — especially the appetizer with chicken tenders and the grilled chicken and salmon.  Last week, I was craving it, and without a TGIFriday’s in our area, I set out to recreate the dish at home.

I threw this sauce together on a weeknight and it made for a very tasty dinner.  I baked the salmon for about 12 minutes and made the rice and vegetables in the rice cleaner so overall it was fairly painless.  This sauce packs all the flavor and must be very close to TGIFriday’s recipe.  Since only Mike and I ate the salmon, I saved the rest of the sauce glaze chicken from the grill over the weekend.  Also a hit!  Both Mike and I approve — and we didn’t offer any to the children… 😉

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Jack Daniel's Sauce
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Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 1 whole finely chopped red onion
  • ½ tsp. minced garlic
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • ½ cup teriyaki sauce
  • ¼ cup soy sauce
  • ⅓ cup white grape juice
  • ½ cup bourbon
  • ½ tsp. Tabasco
Instructions
  1. In a large saucepan, saute the onion and garlic. Add all ingredients and bring to a slow boil. Lower heat and let simmer for 20 minutes or until it begins to thicken and becomes more sauce like. Great served with grilled chicken, salmon, or steak.

 

Taffy Apple Salad

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I’m not one that typically enjoys random side dishes but this recipe works great as a tasty side for a cookout or potluck.  It’s also a great snack or dessert.  I originally found this recipe when I was doing Weight Watchers made with sugar free/fat free pudding and Cool Whip free.  However, this batch was fully leaded.

I thought my kids might like it but they weren’t even willing to try it.  Neither was Mike.  It’s a strange combination of ingredients but the flavor and taste is quite delicious.  It’s also pretty quick to throw together for a last minute gathering.

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Taffy Apple Salad
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Serves: 8
 
Ingredients
  • 4 green apples, chopped
  • 1 - 16 oz. can crushed pineapple
  • 1 small instant butterscotch pudding mix
  • 1 container Cool Whip
  • ¾ cup peanuts (optional)
Instructions
  1. In a blender, puree the crushed pineapple. Add the butterscotch pudding mix and whip until well combined. Fold in the Cool Whip. Add the chopped apples and fold in. Garnish with peanuts and chill before serving.